“We have an agent up on the roof trying to scope out the type of magic in use,” a woman said, turning around to face Jono. “I was against Casale allowing you to be on-site, but he insisted you be allowed inside command. That doesn’t mean you get to make any decisions.”
She smelled like a witch. Jono didn’t know her name, but he definitely didn’t like her attitude. “That arsehole is holding Patrick hostage.”
“Along with half a dozen other people working for the federal government. He isn’t the only victim here.”
Jono knew Patrick always hated when people painted him as a victim. In the aftermath of his return from beyond the veil six months after the end of the Battle of Samhain, people kept wanting to interview him once the public knew he had returned. When he wouldn’t give them the time of day, they ran their own stories with their own opinions, not all of them flattering. But feeding the twenty-four-hour news machine would only ensure the story never died. They’d kept quiet, and eventually, everyone had moved on.
“Why didn’t the wards react to Javic?” The SOA building was covered in wards that had all been redone after the Battle of Samhain. Jono didn’t profess to know how they all worked, but he thought they should have.
“The building is public space, and the wards are geared toward defense. The use of blood magic triggered some of them, but Special Agent in Charge Henry Ng won’t let them target Javic for fear of what will happen to the hostages.”
Jono glanced around the tight space, searching for the man who used to be Patrick’s boss in New York City years ago. “Where is Henry?”
“Still on the premises,” Casale said.
The woman’s lips twitched, as if she wanted to scowl. “He refused to evacuate.”
“We’re sending in a SWAT team soon to back him up. He’s not on the same floor as the hostages yet.”
“I’m going with them,” Jono said.
“Me, too,” Wade added.
Casale sighed deeply. “No. It’s not a situation for civilians, which you both technicallyare, so don’t argue.”
Wade opened his mouth to do just that, but Jono discreetly stepped on his foot to make him be quiet. Wade shot him an affronted look but closed his mouth. Before Jono could try to convince Casale to let them into the SOA building, the mobile on the table started ringing, Patrick’s name coming up on the screen.
Casale reached out and swiped the icon to answer the call whileeveryone around the small table erupted in a flurry of motion. “Casale speaking.”
“Aaron wants an update on his wife,” Patrick said, sounding calm. Jono dialed up his hearing and focused on his lover’s heartbeat, breathing a soft sigh of relief at how steady it was, with no spike that could have been attributed to pain.
“We’re working on opening communications at Rikers.”
“That’s not good enough!” someone else snapped on the other side of the line. Aaron Javic’s heartbeat drummed loudly in Jono’s ears, the stress he was under clear in every rapid spike of his pulse. “I gave you a deadline. If you don’t meet it, then everyone in this room will die.”
“Let’s talk about this, Aaron,” Casale said, keeping his voice calm and soothing, using the man’s first name. Jono doubted that would build the kind of connection everyone hoped for. “You don’t want to kill anyone today.”
“Are you willing to test me on that?”
“He can do it with the artifact, Casale,” Patrick said, not sounding rushed. “It won’t be pretty if he does. I think you should work on getting his wife out of Rikers.”
A couple of SOA agents near the table started talking quietly over the head of the officer in charge of relaying video feed of the conference room from one of the snipers. The aspects of magic they argued over were a little esoteric, but Jono had been around Patrick and other magic users long enough to get the gist of it.
He hooked his hand around Wade’s elbow and tugged the younger man away from the table, drawing him out of the mobile command without anyone noticing. Casale was too busy with his conversation about the hostages to notice their departure.
“Why aren’t we staying?” Wade asked as they stepped off the mobile command vehicle and back onto the street.
“Because Patrick just said Javic’s magic is tied to the artifact. Which means we need to get it out of his hands,” Jono said. He had no idea if doing so would negate the spell on the hostages, but he trusted Patrick to have a plan for that.
Wade made a sweeping gesture with his arm to encompass thecrowd of officers and SOA agents at the end of the block they were on. “They’ll see us if we try.”
“Not if you’re the one walking us inside.”
Wade perked up at that, clapping his hands together. “This feels like old times.”
Jono shook his head, reaching out to drag Wade close. “We could do without that, mate.”
The most they’d dealt with over the last few years were disgruntled packs, and Jonolikedthe peace they had. It felt deserved. This whole trip down memory lane? He could do without it.
